The owner responded with pepper spray -- forcing the would-be robber out of the store.

Officers said she tried to make a getaway, but had to stop her car a short distance away due to the effects of the spray.

"Obviously the person who tried to perpetrate the crime certainly has bigger problems," said Tom Boutilier, who owns the market.

Unfazed, Boutilier calmly brought the attempted robbery to a halt.

"The clerk was actually able to thwart the robbery by deploying pepper spray, striking the woman in the face with the pepper spray. She subsequently dropped the pipe and ran off," said Lt. Maureen Tessier with the Manchester Police Department.

Boutilier watched as Dirksen drove away in a white pickup. Police found her parked around the corner from the store feeling the effects of the spray.

"When the officers found the woman in the vehicle they noticed that her eyes were red and watery, her nose was red and watery, and there was an odor of pepper spray in and about the vehicle," said Tessier.

Boutilier said this was an out-of-the-ordinary event. He said the attempted robbery doesn't reflect the character of the community.

"Manchester is still a great city. I don't think it's overridden with crime. This is a rare occurrence, and I think it could have happened to anyone,"